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	Audit Shows Improvement in Church Policy NECN January 26, 2009 http://www.necn.com/Boston/New-England/2009/01/26/Audit-shows-improvement-in/1233006088.html [with video] (NECN: Lauren Collins, Manchester, NH) - New Hampshire's attorney general released the results of its fourth and final audit of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester. The state has been performing audits as part of an agreement with the diocese related to its handling of sexual misconduct cases by priests. New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly Ayotte is cautiously congratulatory as she releases the fourth and final audit of the Diocese of Manchester and its safe environment program. The diocese now has a formal policy to immediately remove anyone accused of sexual abuse from their ministry. It has also established a compliance database and testing procedures for anyone who works with children. And, it has hired a full time compliance coordinator and placed safe environment coordinators in all parishes and schools. But, there are some concerns. This final audit identified a communication gap between the Office of Ministerial Conduct and the compliance coordinator. It also found weak accountability among program leaders for their own compliance and loopholes in the compliance database. The state also wants the diocese to commit to conduct its own audits in the future. More than 8,000 people within the church, many of them laity and parents, contribute to the church's internal oversight. And that, says Father Arsenault, ensures both the success and sustainability of the safe environment program. But, there are still skeptics, nervous about what happens when the legal oversight ends. The attorney general recognized that concern, and says the diocese is still accountable to criminal and civil law.
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